1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to the art of refrigerators and, more particularly, to an icemaker system for in a refrigerator.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
Whether it be to ensure an adequate amount of ice for a party or keep up with daily demand, there is always a need to decrease ice production time. In the art of refrigerated appliances, it is known to employ fans or other similar devices to decrease an amount of time required to produce ice. Typically, the fan is oriented to direct air from an evaporator portion of the refrigerator across an ice mold. The flow of air disturbs a thermal barrier that is present at the ice mold increasing temperature transfer rates and, as a consequence, decreasing ice production time.
While the above arrangements utilize fans to blow evaporator air across the ice mold, other arrangements directly expose the ice mold to the evaporator. The evaporator is part of a primary refrigeration system that is employed to maintain temperatures in a fresh food and freezer compartment of the refrigerator. While effective, the above described systems typically rely on a cooling demand signal. That is, regardless of the need for ice, the above described systems only function when either the fresh food or freezer compartments require cooling which necessitates the activation of the refrigeration system. Correspondingly, even during periods when no ice production is required, the above described systems function upon activation of the refrigeration system.
Regardless of the teachings in the prior art, there still exists a need for a system to reduce ice production time in a refrigerator. More specifically, there exists a need for a system that can, upon demand, decrease ice production time regardless of a need for cooling in the refrigerator.